Zes politiemannen met daaronder hun hulpmiddelen before 1890

This illustrated page, of unknown date and authorship, depicts the Parisian police force with their equipment. It comes from a time of great social upheaval in France, and the police are an institution with a charged role. As the text tells us, the city sergeant became a soldier in 1870, suggesting the militarization of the police force at a time of national crisis. The image presents the police as figures of authority, but also as servants of the public, equipped to deal with fires, runaway horses and even saving people from drowning. Understanding the image fully requires understanding the complex relationship between the police and the public in France at the time, and the use of photography to create a sense of order and control. Researching police archives and newspaper reports from the period could tell us more about the public role of this profession and whether they lived up to their calling.